Oct. 13, 2012
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Justin Bieber performs in Las Vegas on Sept. 30. / Steve Spatafore AP

by Olivia Barker, USA TODAY

by Olivia Barker, USA TODAY

Justin Bieber didn't tweet wolf when he claimed his laptop was stolen Tuesday night during a Tacoma, Wash., show - or so his publicist tells the Associated Press.

"Be very clear, the laptop was indeed stolen in Tacoma. That was NOT a hoax," Bieber's publicist, Melissa Victor, wrote in an email to the AP.

The whole episode raised eyebrows Friday when it appeared the tweet - and subsequent tweets from an account called @gexwy - were all part of an elaborate stunt to publicize Bieber's new Beauty and a Beat video, released Friday. The video opens with text saying personal footage was stolen and uploaded "illegally."

Tacoma police spokesman Mark Fulghum told the AP that a report was filed online Wednesday, but he doesn't foresee police officers spending much time investigating."A lot of people got played," said Fulghum, who did concede that the Bieb's laptop could very well have been swiped. "It became a big media frenzy, so I guess that was the idea."

According to the Tacoma News Tribune, local authorities reviewed surveillance video of the room where the pop star's property was allegedly taken but could not determine whether a theft had occurred.